Central Dauphin High School graduate inspires wrestling team, peers

Taylor Dippery may not win takedowns on the wrestling mat, but she’s as much a part of Central Dauphin High School’s state wrestling championships as anyone on the team.

JENNY KANE, The Patriot-NewsTaylor Dippery was determined to make friends when she began attending Central Dauphin High School as a sophomore. A basketball player who uses a wheelchair because of spina bifida, she helped out with the wrestling team her brother competed on to meet people. She received the excellence in business award.

The West Hanover Township teen, who has spina bifida and uses a wheelchair, has been both wrestling team manager and its inspiration, said Kurtis Terry, high school guidance counselor.

Spina bifida is a birth defect in which the bones of the spine do not form properly around the spinal cord.

“Her positive attitude has helped the wrestlers achieve many state titles and perform to their best,” Terry said. “Taylor refuses to let her disability hold her back. No matter what is going on in her life, she always has a smile on her face and is so friendly.”

Unlike many of the graduates, Dippery only started attending school in the Central Dauphin School District as a sophomore, when her family moved from Lewistown. She considered her first few weeks at Central Dauphin High School challenging.

“I stood out because I was in a wheelchair,” Dippery said. “People didn’t know how to reach out to me, so I was ignored. It was hard to make friends at first. But my brother is a wrestler so I went to the wrestling team. I did video, kept statistics and helped out. I started meeting people and making friends.”

As an athlete in her own right, Dippery has played wheelchair basketball for Katie’s Komets of Philadelphia for the past three years.

“One day, I just picked up a basketball, dribbled and taught myself to play,” Dippery said. “It’s harder to play basketball from a wheelchair because you have to push the chair, throw the ball and dribble. The hoops are just as high and the rules are the same. But I like it. I’m competitive and like to win.”

She was recruited to play wheelchair basketball at Illinois University and Edinboro State University, but plans instead to attend Lebanon Valley College. Dippery also calls herself a “diehard New York Mets fan. I never miss a game.”

Dippery, who is an honors student, received the Central Dauphin High School excellence in business award, said she plans to study accounting at LVC. She recently bought a van with a wheelchair lift and hand controls so she can take herself to school.

The ceremony, which began with the class marching into Giant Center, included talks by Edward Schrom, valedictorian, and F. Cody Kahoe, III, salutatorian and class president.

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